Edited in 2016 to add: When I wrote this post in 2015, you were only able to download this planner. In 2016, you are only able to purchase a hard copy of the planner, which takes around 3 weeks to ship from Sri Lanka! On to the post...
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Ramadan is right around the corner, and now's the time to start preparing for it! The month is not only about refraining from eating from dawn to dusk, but is also about changing negative habits and living a better life. How do you plan for such a change in your life? I have tried out the Ramadan Planner by The Organized Muslim and firmly believe that if you are serious about trying to make a difference in your life during this month, the planner will only make things easier for you! Although this planner was sent to me, all opinions are my own.
The planner consists of 105 pages and is downloadable. It is to be printed on B5 paper. My local printing shop did not have this sized paper, so I used the standard letter size. It still turned out nicely! I asked the cost of printing it in color and it was a whopping $60. I decided to print out the title pages in color and the remaining in black and white. I could add colors in myself with things I already had! Also, even though this planner is targeted towards women, I don't see why men can't use it. Just print everything out in black and white! :)
This is the table of contents page. As you can tell, the planner has a lot to offer. The various chapters help you work on different aspects of Ramadan and Eid.
The Ramadan Planner starts off with virtues of the Holy Month, spread over 2 pages. I found this to be a great reminder, because we tend to forget as we get older and have so many things to think about and take care of. It helps to go back to square one and ponder on what Ramadan is really about!
Giving gifts increases the love in one another's hearts, and what better time to give gifts than the joyous occasion of Eid? There is a chart included in the planner over 2 pages for gifts for loved ones. It's better to get this done with before Ramadan begins so that you can focus on worship during the blessed month.
Here's the main part for having a productive Ramadan: setting goals! A box is given to brainstorm what you would like to achieve during this month. It can be absolutely anything. Be creative!
After that, a few pages are given to break down your vision for Ramadan, making it more manageable. You can even set an amount you'd like to donate and jot down where you will be giving a certain amount of money. If you have goals, you'll be able to accomplish a lot more in Ramadan compared to having no goals in advance.
Ramadan is one of the best times to make prayers and ask Allah (SWT) for anything. The planner consists of 2 pages for a list of duas. I chose to have a list of duas for Deen and Duniya. You could also break it down by writing duas for yourself and duas for others.
Ramadan is about refraining from sin as much as it is about refraining from food. That's where this accountability chart comes in use. You can keep track of any bad habits you might have and strive to improve.
The Salah chart is also very useful, where you can attempt to go beyond the usual obligatory prayers and increase your Sunnah and Nafl prayers. There's always going to be that urge of increasing the ticks on your chart in this one!
You can then get into the details of how will you spend your day during Ramadan. There is a section for hour by hour planning, high energy deeds, low energy deeds and meal planning on one page.
On the second page of the first day, there is a detailed section on Quran recitation, along with boxes for accountability and gratitude to Allah. This really makes you reflect during the end of your day. There's also a to-do list for the next day.
At the end of the Ramadan planner, there is a checklist of sunnah acts to do during the day of Eid. I love how there is a step by step list so we don't miss anything out!
The planner also includes 3 bonus sections. The first one is Meal Planning.
In order to get the bulk of groceries out of the way before Ramadan, there is a long list where you can add things you need to buy for this month.
Here's a look at what the meal planning pages look like. Plenty of space!
The next bonus section is a collection of easy-to-do deeds to get more rewards during Ramadan. I found this to be a great idea because sometimes when we get busy as adults we tend to forget ideas of what MORE we can do during Ramadan. There are many ideas in this section.
Here's a sample of just one of the pages.
Finally, the planner ends with a list of general duas.
Overall, I am definitely impressed with the content of this planner. I must admit, before I saw it, I thought the price was a little high for a downloadable planner ($29). After receiving it though, I can see that the planner has a LOT to offer and covers all aspects of Ramadan and Eid. It has a minimalistic look but is in-depth at the same time. Ramadan comes only once a year so we need to make the most of it. This planner can, without a doubt, make yours more productive!
Click HERE if you'd like to purchase the printable planner. Let me know what you think of it in the comments below!
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